Countries › Peru › Guide › 3. Investing › Restricted activities and screening in Peru: border zone property, domestic aviation, broadcasting, cabotage and what is not screened

Restricted activities and screening in Peru: border zone property, domestic aviation, broadcasting, cabotage and what is not screened

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Last verified: 2026-10-28 · Status: Stable

Peru has no general foreign investment screening or national security review: foreign capital is authorized automatically and treated like domestic capital. The restrictions are few and sector specific: foreigners cannot own mines, land, forests, water or energy sources within 50 km of the borders without a supreme decree; domestic airlines must start with 51 percent Peruvian ownership, with the regulation letting foreign ownership rise to 70 percent after six months of operation; and broadcasting licenses go only to Peruvians or Peruvian companies. Maritime cabotage, once reserved to Peruvian shipowners, has been open to foreign companies since Ley Nº 32049 of June 2024.

USD figures use S/ 3.452 per US dollar, the banking system selling rate published by the Superintendencia de Banca, Seguros y AFP for 27 October 2026 and shown in the Banco Central de Reserva del Perú statistics series PD04640PD. Amounts in UIT use the 2026 tax unit of S/ 5,500 (Decreto Supremo Nº 301-2025-EF, as cited in SUNAT Resolución de Superintendencia Nº 000016-2026). Amounts that the law sets in US dollars are quoted as written. Conversions are for orientation only.

Key facts

General prior approval or national security screening of foreign investment	None; foreign investment is authorized automatically textConstitution art. 63; DL 662 art. 2 and 3, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Border strip where foreigners cannot own mines, land, forests, water or energy sources without a supreme decree	50 kmConstitution art. 71, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Minimum Peruvian ownership of a domestic airline at the start of operations	51 %Ley 27261 art. 79.2 c, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Maximum foreign ownership of a domestic airline after six months of operating permit	70 %DS 050-2001-MTC art. 160, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Who may hold radio and TV licenses	Peruvian individuals or companies incorporated and domiciled in Peru textLey 28278 art. 24, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Foreign companies in maritime cabotage	Allowed since Ley 32049 (2024) textDL 1413 art. 4 as amended by Ley 32049, as of 2026-10-28 · in force

The rule

1. National and foreign investment are subject to the same conditions, and production of goods and services and foreign trade are free. If another country adopts protectionist or discriminatory measures that harm the national interest, the State may adopt analogous measures in defense of that interest.Constitución Política del Perú de 1993, Art. 63, first paragraph, 1993-12-30 official text · verified 2026-10-28

2. Foreign investors and the companies in which they invest have the same rights and obligations as national investors and companies, with no exceptions other than those in the Constitution and DL 662, and the legal system may never discriminate between investors on the basis of national or foreign participation. Foreign investments are authorized automatically and, once made, must be registered with the competent national body (today ProInversión); there is no screening procedure.Decreto Legislativo Nº 662 (published 2 September 1991), Art. 2 and art. 3, 1991-09-02 official text · verified 2026-10-28

3. Foreigners, individuals or companies, have the same property rights as Peruvians, but within 50 km of the borders they may not acquire or possess under any title mines, land, forests, water, fuels or energy sources, directly or indirectly, individually or through a company, on pain of losing the right to the State. The exception is a case of public necessity expressly declared by supreme decree approved by the Council of Ministers. The law may also, only for national security and temporarily, restrict the acquisition, possession, exploitation and transfer of specific goods.Constitución Política del Perú de 1993, Art. 71 and art. 72, 1993-12-30 official text · verified 2026-10-28

4. Domestic commercial aviation is reserved to Peruvian individuals and companies. A company is Peruvian if it has its principal domicile in Peru, at least half plus one of its directors and managers are Peruvian or permanently domiciled in Peru, and at least 51 percent of its capital is Peruvian owned and under the real and effective control of Peruvian shareholders domiciled in Peru; the law leaves the term of this limitation to the regulation.Ley Nº 27261, Ley de Aeronáutica Civil del Perú (promulgated 9 May 2000), Art. 79.1 and 79.2, 2000-05-09 official text · verified 2026-10-28

5. The 51 percent Peruvian ownership requirement is kept for six months from the start of the operating permit; after that, foreign ownership of the capital may reach 70 percent.
Example: A new domestic airline with S/ 34,520,000 of capital (US$10,000,000) needs at least S/ 17,605,200 Peruvian owned at launch, and after six months of operation foreign holders may own up to S/ 24,164,000.Reglamento de la Ley de Aeronáutica Civil, Decreto Supremo Nº 050-2001-MTC (El Peruano, 26 December 2001), Art. 160, 2001-12-26 official text · verified 2026-10-28

6. Only Peruvian individuals and legal entities incorporated and domiciled in Peru may hold radio and television authorizations and licenses; a foreigner cannot hold one directly or through a sole proprietorship. The paragraph limiting foreign participation in licensee companies to 40 percent was declared unconstitutional by the Constitutional Court (Exp. Nº 00013-2007-PI/TC, published 16 December 2007), which tied equal treatment of foreign capital to reciprocity granted by the investor's country.Ley Nº 28278, Ley de Radio y Televisión (SPIJ text updated to 26 February 2015), Art. 24, 2007-12-16 official text · verified 2026-10-28 · changed: Constitutional Court ruling Exp. 00013-2007-PI/TC (published 16 December 2007) struck the 40 percent foreign participation cap in art. 24.

7. Under the merchant marine law, cabotage was reserved to Peruvian flagged vessels of national shipowners, defined as Peruvian incorporated companies with at least 51 percent of capital owned by Peruvian citizens and a Peruvian chair, board majority and general manager. Ley Nº 32049 (El Peruano, 6 June 2024) now lets maritime cabotage of passengers and cargo be carried out by individuals or companies incorporated in Peru or abroad, with national or foreign capital, exempting them from those requirements.Ley Nº 28583, Ley de Reactivación y Promoción de la Marina Mercante Nacional; Decreto Legislativo Nº 1413 art. 4 as amended by Ley Nº 32049, Ley 28583 art. 4 num. 1 and art. 7.1 to 7.3; DL 1413 art. 4 (Ley 32049 art. 1), 2024-06-06 official text · verified 2026-10-28 · changed: Ley Nº 32049 (6 June 2024) rewrote DL 1413 art. 4 so foreign companies with foreign capital can provide maritime cabotage, exempt from Ley 28583 art. 4 num. 1 and art. 7.1 to 7.3.

8. Up to 25 percent of domestic hydrocarbon cabotage remains reserved to vessels of the Peruvian Navy for security, defense and national interest reasons.Ley Nº 28583 as amended by Ley Nº 29475 (17 December 2009), Art. 7.4, 2009-12-17 official text · verified 2026-10-28

9. The only general deal review is competition based, not nationality based: concentrations that cross the turnover thresholds need INDECOPI's prior authorization regardless of the buyer's origin.Ley Nº 31112 (El Peruano, 7 January 2021), Art. 6, 2021-01-07 official text · verified 2026-10-28

Activity	Limit	Legal basis	Status
Mines, land, forests, water, fuels, energy within 50 km of borders	Foreigners barred unless a supreme decree declares public necessity	Constitution art. 71	In force
Domestic commercial aviation	51 percent Peruvian at start; up to 70 percent foreign after six months	Ley 27261 art. 79; DS 050-2001-MTC art. 160	In force
Radio and television licenses	Holder must be Peruvian or a Peru incorporated and domiciled company; 40 percent cap struck down	Ley 28278 art. 24; TC Exp. 00013-2007-PI/TC	In force (as modified by the ruling)
Maritime cabotage	Open to foreign incorporated companies with foreign capital	DL 1413 art. 4 as amended by Ley 32049	Opened June 2024
Hydrocarbon cabotage	Up to 25 percent reserved to Navy vessels	Ley 28583 art. 7.4	In force
Mergers and acquisitions	Competition review above thresholds, any nationality	Ley 31112 art. 6	In force

Foreign ownership limits by activity, from the official texts cited.

Worked example

A Chilean owned Peruvian S.A.C. wants farmland 30 km from the border with Chile. Because the restriction applies to foreigners acting directly or indirectly through a company (Constitution art. 71), it needs a supreme decree declaring public necessity approved by the Council of Ministers, or it must choose land outside the 50 km strip.
A foreign aviation group launches a domestic airline with S/ 34,520,000 of capital (US$10,000,000). At launch at least 51 percent (S/ 17,605,200) must be Peruvian owned and controlled; six months after the operating permit takes effect, the foreign group may raise its stake to 70 percent (Ley 27261 art. 79.2; DS 050-2001-MTC art. 160).
A foreign shipping line can now run coastal container services between Callao and Paita through its own foreign company, without the Peruvian shipowner requirements of Ley 28583 (DL 1413 art. 4 as amended by Ley 32049).

Step by step

List every asset and license the project needs and check each against the restrictions above and the sector law.
For land or mining rights near a border, measure the distance to the frontier early; inside 50 km, plan the supreme decree process or restructure.
For airlines and broadcasters, design the cap table and board composition to meet nationality rules at licensing and over time.
Run the INDECOPI merger control test for acquisitions (see acquiring a Peruvian company).
Register the foreign investment with ProInversión after it is made (see the foreign investment regime page).

Common traps

The border zone ban reaches indirect holdings through Peruvian companies with foreign shareholders (Constitution art. 71); a local SPV does not avoid it.
Rights acquired in breach of the border zone rule are lost in favor of the State (art. 71), not merely voidable.
Ley 27261 art. 79 alone suggests a permanent 51 percent rule; the six month step to 70 percent foreign ownership is in the regulation (DS 050-2001-MTC art. 160, original 2001 gazette text). Confirm with the DGAC that no later amendment changed it before relying on it.
The radio and TV text available from SPIJ is updated to 26 February 2015; check later amendments before structuring a broadcaster.
Cabotage liberalization under Ley 32049 covers maritime cabotage under DL 1413; other water transport and the Navy's hydrocarbon reserve are governed by Ley 28583.
Peru has no foreign investment screening, but Argentine investors should still check Argentine rules on outbound investment and FX; see the Argentine guide.

Sources

← Environmental certification and prior consultation for investment projects in Peru: SEIA categories, SENACE and Ley Nº 29785Mining tax stability contracts in Peru: 10, 12 and 15 year guarantees under the Ley General de Minería →

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